Quick detachable electrical connection



March 13, 1934. E, 5 SMART QUICK DETACHABLE ELECTRICAL CONNECTION Filed Jan. 15, 1929 Patented Mar. 13, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Ezra E. Smart, Hartford, Conn, assignor to The Hart Manufacturing Company, Hartford, Conn, a corporation of Connecticut Application January 15, 1929, Serial No. 332,608

Claims.

This invention relates to a device for securing and electrically connecting a wire or similar current-carrying member to another member, such, for example, as a binding post of a switch.

5 In the present illustrative disclosure, the improvements of the invention are shown incorporated in or applied to a contact post assembly of a switch, but it is understood that while my invention has peculiar application in that connection, it is not limited thereto. The inven tion is susceptible of various modifications and adaptations.

The aim of the invention is to provide a device of this sort having various features of novelty and advantage and which is particularly characterized by the readiness and facility with which an electrical conductor or wire may be secured thereto, the ease and rapidity with which the wire may be detached therefrom, and the security with which the'wire is held in place thereby.

A further aim of the invention is to provide a quick detachable electrical connector which is very simple in construction, which may be cheaply made, and which is effective in operation.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out more in detail hereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter set forth and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein I have shown, for illustrative purposes, one embodiment which the present invention may take:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of my improved connector embodied in a contact post applied to a switch body;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the contact post assembly;

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view through the assembly; and

Fig. 4 is an elevational view of the spring member of the connector.

The device of the present invention consists broadly of a relatively rigid or backing member having a surface against which a conductor is adapted to be pressed, and a spring element disposed at an angle to said surface and having a free edge adapted to engage the conductor in such manner as to prevent withdrawal of the latter while the spring element is pressing the conductor against said surface.

Referring to the drawing in detail, the rigid or 5- backing member is shown as comprising an arm 10 of a contact post A, and the spring element is shown as comprising a leaf or arm 11 of a U- shaped spring B. The conductor C is shown as being in the form of a single wire, but, obviously, the conductor may be formed of a plurality of strands of wire. The conductor may be inserted through an opening 9 in the bottom of the contact post. The spring leaf 11 is hinged, so to speak, at one end, and adjacent its free end has an edge 13 which is opposed to the surface 12 of the arm 18 and against which surface the wire C is adapted to engage. The leaf 11 is disposed at an acute angle to the surface 12.

It will be observed that the wire C, in the event it is relatively stiff or rigid, may be secured in place by merely pushing the same up between the rigid arm 10 and the leaf 11. When this is done, the leaf ll springs from the dotted line position to the full line position of Fig. 3. The end of the wire is now securely clamped into place. If it is attempted to withdraw the wire by pulling on the same without first springing the leaf away from the wire, the wire is only more securely held, as the leaf, so to speak, is wedged with additional force against the wire.

The edge 13 of the spring bites into the wire, and the greater the pull on the wire, the greater the bite. In the event that the wire is not rigid or stiif, as would be the case of a wire formed of a plurality of very thin strands, the conductor may be secured in place by first springing the leaf away from the arm 10, inserting the wire between the leaf and the arm, and then releasing the leaf, whereupon the leaf springs into position and clamps the wire into place. Thereafter, the stranded wire cannot be pulled out until the leaf is sprung away from the wire.

As previously stated, my improved arrangement has various applications and adaptations, but in the drawing, it is shown as being incorporated in a contact post assembly of a switch. In the specific construction illustrated, the switch has a base 20 provided with an annular rib or flange 21 interrupted by a channel 22 the sides of which have vertical grooves 23. The contact post is generally U-shaped and has the heretofore described arm 10, a bottom 24, and an arm 25. This latter arm has a contact 26 with which the switch plate (not shown) is adapted to engage. Extending from the bottom portion 24 are ears or lugs 27 which are adapted to engage in the grooves 23 so as to prevent the contact post from becoming displaced with respect to the base of the switch. At the upper end of the arm 25 are a pair of spaced inturned lugs 30.

The spring member B is of generally U or V- shape. It has the heretofore described arm which extends upwardly and outwardly from the lowerend of an arm 31. The upper end of the arm or leg 31 of thespring B has an out-turned lip 32 adapted to rest upon the top of the arm between the ears 36.

Extending outwardlyand downwardly from e ach side of the leg 31 of the spring is a wing 33, and these wings are adapted to straddle the bottom portion 24 of the contact post. The lugs and the wings 33 hold the spring B; in proper position within the contact post. The leaf 11 is provided with an opening 35 which is adapted to accommodate the upper end of the arm 10 when there is no wire or connector clamped by the'device. The lower edge 13 of this opening is adapted to engage and bite into the wire as heretoforestated. The leaf 3 extends above the upper end of v It will be seen, from the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing,fthat, with my improved arrangement, the wire or other conductor may be very quickly and easily brought and clamped into place; in fact, the mere bringing the wire into position results in it being securely held in that position; The wire may be easily detached by merely springing the leaf 11 away from the wire and then pulling the latter from position. The use of screws or other means which have to be manipu lated for securing the wire in place are entirely eliminated; the structure is simplified; and the arrangement may be very cheaply manufactured.

As many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpretedas illustrative and not in a limiting sense. 1

It is also to be understood that the language used in the following claims is intende'dto cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention hereindescribed and all statements of the scope of the inventionwhich, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween;

I claim as my invention:

1. Aquick detachable electrical connection including a U-shaped rigid member, one arm of which is provided with-a surface against which a wire is adapted to be held, and a spring leaf disposed at an acuteangle to said surface, said leaf being positioned within said U-shaped member and having a free end provided with an edge adapted to hold the wire against said surface.

2. A quick detachable electrical connection including a U-shaped rigid member, one, arm of which is provided with a surface against which a wire isadapted to be held, and a spring element of angular shape and having one arm adapted to engage against one of the in said rigid ,inem'ber and another arm or leaf disposed at an generally V-shaped spring element, said spring a pair of arms one of wh ch has a pair of lugs at upper end; andia spring element generally V- shaped having a leg adapted to engage against that arm of the U-shaped member provided with said lugs; said leg of said spring element having an out-turned lip adapted to engage between lugs, said spring element also 11 having a leafolsposed at an acute angle to the other arm of said rigid member and provided with a gripping edge.

5. A quick detachable electricalfconnection including a U-shaped rigid member provided with a; pair of arms, one of which a pair of lugs at its upper end; and a spring element generally V- shaped and having a leg, adapted to engage against that arm of the U-shaped member provided with said lugs, said. leg of said spring elemerit having an out-turned lip adapted to en- 'gag between saidlugs and said leg also having a pair of outwardly and downwardly extending wings. straddling the base of said member, said sprin element having a leaf disposed at an'acute angle tothe other arm of said'rigid'rnember and provided with a gripping edge.'

EZRA E; SMART; V I 

